Earth is surrounded by millions of pieces of space junk. It's a problem.

A traffic jam is growing around Earth, but most of the debris is too small to see or track.

Scientists estimate that more than 230 million pieces of space debris measuring between 1 millimeter and 1 centimeter are circling the planet, along with another 1.5 million larger fragments. Traveling at orbital speeds that can exceed 17,000 mph, even relatively small pieces can seriously damage a functioning satellite.

WRAL Climate Change reporter Liz McLaughlin and WRAL's Grace Holland talk through the concerns and possible solutions.